Chuck season 2 - Page 20

Re: Chuck season 2

That would work fine. In the past, people have expressed dislike for product placement, but I haven't had a problem with being shown Subway so much in Chuck's second season. If they can work a Subway in as a major location and thereby save the show, more power to them. NBC's ratings struggles are well noted, but deals like this and the one with DirecTV to save FNL show that they are willing to get innovative in order to keep certain shows on the air.

Re: Chuck season 2

According to a NY Times blog:

Re: Chuck season 2

I think the Subway bits so far have been pretty reasonable, and I think it wouldn't be that horrible if Sarah's cover job became a Subway, it fits into the show pretty organically that way.

Re: Chuck season 2

Keep in mind, mid-season is March 2010 because of the Winter Olympics. Ten months until more Chuck. At least it's coming back.

Re: Chuck season 2

The only thing is, how can their cover not be totally blown at this point? Does anyone in Fulcrum not know who Sarah and Chuck are?

Re: Chuck season 2

But there's also a third group involved now.

Re: Chuck season 2

Not sure what you mean here.

Does Fulcrum/The Ring know they are agents?
Yes.

Does Fulcrum/The Ring know Chuck is the Intersect?
No.

Re: Chuck season 2

No, but they know he's a constant thorn in the side and has SOME connection to the Intersect. They're not just going to let him work a cover job and not be constantly trying to kill him or take him for information. Until some time in season two, they didn't even know he was of any interest at all, and the show was usually careful to have anyone who found out be killed or incarcerated. Now, it's common knowledge that he is some kind of agent.

Re: Chuck season 2

I am not going to analyze who knows who is an agent. I will just "go with the flow" and enjoy a third season.

Re: Chuck season 2

Everybody knows that CIA headquarters is in Langley, VA. (Hell, it has its own exit off the beltway marked with a big white-on-green interstate highway sign, and a municipal bus line runs through the middle of the place. By now it probably has its own Metro stop - it has been 30 years since I spent any time in the area, and the Metro was just getting started back then.) Point being that the KGB wasn't constantly bombing the place or picking off agents and analysts in the parking lot every day during the Cold War. Just because you know who and where the agents are, doesn't mean you automatically take action against them.

Sure, some people in Fulcrum know that Chuck is a Stamford Geek who had a connection to Bryce and is somehow connected to the Intersect (by more than family ties), but that doesn't mean they're going to go after him all the time. A) They know he's got some fairly formidable protection in the form of Sarah and Casey. B) Not knowing his place in the grand scheme of things, they don't know if they should kill him, kidnap and coerce him or try to recruit him. So there's no particular reason not to let him continue to use whatever cover he's assigned - especially since a cover identity is sometimes as much a matter of keeping friends, family and strangers from knowing that someone is an asset as it is of hiding said asset from the bad guys. (Who are probably going to figure things out at some point, if they're smart enough to be a threat in the first place.)

Regards,

Joe

Re: Chuck season 2

I see a real problem with Sarah, or any other character, having an undercover position at a Subway. I am afraid it would severely limit the type of jokes used in connection with the cover.

As an example, imagine instead of the Buy More, Best Buy was a sponsor and Casey and Chuck and the rest of the crew were working at a Best Buy. Does anyone actually think the store and employees would have been portrayed in the same way? Of course not. Best Buy wouldn't allow that.

With Subway on board any stories that take place in or around the store will never be critical or disparage the store in anyway. IMHO, that would be a problem.

-Keith

Re: Chuck season 2

Yeah, with Sarah working at Subway, they could never subject the sandwich shop business to the kind of brutal satire and biting social commentary they did about the yogurt shop and hot dog industries. I'll miss that. Oh, wait. They never did any jokes about Sarah's jobs.

As long as Chuck isn't working at Subway, I really don't see the problem.

Regards,

Joe

Re: Chuck season 2

Well since "brutal satire and biting social commentary" isn't found anywhere in Chuck, the fact that we didn't see it at the hot dog place or yogurt shop was pretty much a given. However, if your point was to simply state (in the most condescending way possible) that Sarah's cover wasn't significantly involved in any of the show's humor, I think everyone would agree with that. Myself included.

The Buy More is another story. For me, a significant portion of the show's humor was directly related to the Buy More, a fictional entity. Many times, Chuck was more of a witness to the humor rather than being the focus of it.

There seems to be at least some indication in how the show ended season 2 and what little we have heard about the next season that the Buy More might be replaced with a Subway (all speculation of course). If that happens, I think it would limit what the writers would be able do as far as portraying the operations at the store and in turn, limit the potential gags.

But who knows? If the cover does become a Subway the writers may be able to get away with a lot more then I would imagine. If they are limited in some way because of the sponsorship it doesn't mean the show won't be funny. However, it will most certainly be different. Time will tell if different turns out to be good or bad.

-Keith

Re: Chuck season 2

I have no problem with Subway becoming Sarah's new workplace. I would have a problem if they replaced Casey with Jared.

Re: Chuck season 2

What if the Subway promotion idea turns out like those 1970's comic book adds featuring Superheroes and villians shilling Hostess Fruit Pies.??

Re: Chuck season 2

YouTube - NBC Chuck Season 3 loaded

Pretty cool fan made Season 3 Renewal video.

Re: Chuck season 2

I have no problem with any kind of product placement Subway plans. I am just glad there will be a Season 3 of Chuck.

Re: Chuck season 2

Interesting article questioning NBC's move to renew Chuck:

News - NBC is Taking a Gamble on 'Chuck'

Re: Chuck season 2

Nothing about the struggling shows today is comparable, since all were badly damaged by the writer's strike. "Chuck" had the makings of a hit in its first season before the strike took it off the air for an extended period of time. Even during the second season, it wasn't exactly NBC's lowest rated show. Both "Jericho" and "Arrested Development" were in worse shape, relatively speaking when they got the hail Mary renewal. "Jericho" because it was a drag on the top rated network on television, where the expectations are higher, and "Arrested Development" because it genuinely failed to attract an audience. Neither show convinced a single advertiser to take the kind of stake that Subway's taking in "Chuck", either.

I do think holding it until midseason is a mistake if they want to grow the show's audience. Bench shows tend to be reliable modest performers like "Scrubs", "Medium" and "According to Jim" that post the same numbers regardless of when you stick them on. I don't think "Chuck" will do worse next spring, but I don't see NBC's strategy for growing the show, either.

Re: Chuck season 2

Shut up, Joe Flint. He is right about the timeslot being a problem, but only because Chuck and Big Bang Theory target the identical audience and BBT seems to win them over.

Re: Chuck season 2

House and Dancing With The Stars was the main problem for Chuck. It will be interesting to see which performs better in the 8 pm Monday time slot next season - Heroes or Chuck.

NBC and Subway will promote Chuck during the Winter Olympics. Zac's appearance in the Alvin and the Chipmunks movie during the Christmas holidays may also provide a bump as it should put his face in front of a lot of families not yet familiar with him.

Big, Bang Theory moving to 09:30 pm should help too - as the shows overlap somewhat in their target audience.

This is pretty cool.  One thing that has to be said, though.  Damn, baby.  It's alright to scream at the beginning.  It's alright to scream at the end.  But, how about you shut up and listen for at least part of it?

Why hasn't there been a release date announced for the season 2 DVD's?  What's the hold up?

Since it isn't coming back until the spring, maybe they're going to hold it until it's closer.  Christmas season, maybe.

That makes sense.  They generally try to cross-promote the DVD release of the previous season of any series with the start of its next season.  The ads for one increase awareness of the other, so both the studio and the network benefit from the other's promotional effort.  Fans (and newbies catching up with a show) are almost certainly more motivated to pick up a DVD set in the weeks before the anticipated return of a show than they are right after a given season ends. 

Regards,

Joe

And now Lana Lang joins the cast of "Chuck"! Kristin Kreuk plays a glamorous magazine editor whose life takes a major tumble that ultimately ends up with her working at the Buy More.

For a show that has a smaller budget than before, they sure are adding a lot of cast members.

"Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li" may have resulted in a pay cut...

Superman and Lana Lang?  Who's next?  Pete Ross?